


Stark's temporary accommodation for rebellious kids.

by Neuro_writer



Category: The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Adopted Children, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Amputee Bucky Barnes, Child Assassins, Multi, Teen AU, Teen Angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-23
Updated: 2016-06-10
Packaged: 2018-05-28 13:48:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 16,308
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6331600
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Neuro_writer/pseuds/Neuro_writer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony Stark in a moment of madness (according to Pepper) sets up a foster home for a bunch of troubled teens.Little does he know the troubles it will cause him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Grand Idea

Tony Stark had never been that close to his father. Howard had never done the fatherly love thing; instead Tony had been dragged up under the firm hand of Jarvis. He had admired the way the older man had tried to keep him on the straight and narrow, a respect that had led to him programming the soothing voice into his AI assistant. He had read the literature, of course he had, he was a genius after all, about the effects of poor parenting on the abilities of the child to raise offspring. It worried him, would he be a bad parent. Not that Howard was awful, just distant. 

Tony realised he had been staring at his own hands for well over five minutes. How was he going to sort out this problem? When did he suddenly feel the need to have children in his life? Surely things were more peaceful without mini Stark’s running around the tower. It wasn’t as if he couldn’t have children. He certainly could, he was Tony Stark.

Then it struck him, he didn’t actually like small children, and sure they were cute to look at, all big eyes and bright smiles. But the dribble, he had too many electronics around for that. Also the mess, he could create enough on his own without the added help of little hands. The list against children was growing longer, after all who could look after them when he was in the lab. They were ok to hold for press photos but not to keep. No he would rather hand them back after a few minutes. Then he was struck with a spark of an idea….

“No” was the answer that accompanied the stern look Pepper was giving him as they sat in the living room. She had been idly flicking through some papers when Tony had sidled up to her. From this manoeuvre alone she had known she wasn't going to enjoy the next words that came out of his mouth. 

“Oh come on Pep, it’ll be great, me and some teenagers crashing around the tower, what could go wrong?”

“Tony, you might be smart…”

“A genius”  
“But you have the mind of a child, mixing teenagers into the equation can only end in disaster” Pepper continued ignoring his interruption. “I mean do you have experience with them at all?” The CEO of Stark industries sighed. She knew she was fighting a losing battle with Tony. 

“Well Jarvis has and I mean he raised me so what could possibly go wrong?” Pepper raised one immaculate eyebrow at him. The problem was, that once an idea entered into his head, it was never truly going to go away. That’s how they had ended up with the suits in the first place, not forgetting that one time with the giant rabbit toy. Pepper tried to forget these things but somehow they always came creeping back into her mind. Especially when confronted with an excitable Tony.  
“Look, Stark’s home for delinquents sounds a perfect idea. I’ll take in waifs and strays that need somewhere to crash. Teenagers what could go wrong? They won’t drool on things, they can feed themselves, and I have enough money to fund their talents or whatever.”

“You can’t just throw money at every problem you have!” She knew this wasn’t going to be the end of it. Oh no Tony had that gleam in his eye that meant he would go through with this no matter what she said. Now he was smiling at her. She knew it was a lost cause. As long as he didn’t start waggling his eyebrows, she might just be able to maintain her composure.

“Ok fine I’ll look into the legalities of you running a foster home for teenagers but don’t blame me when you are stuck dealing with mood swings and raging hormones.”

Tony literally beamed, rising from his seat to squeeze the woman in a bone-crushing hug. He knew Pepper would get on board with his idea. She always had supported him, that’s why he had put her in charge of his company in the first place.

So it was after some digging into the legal side of setting up a foster home that, Stark’s temporary accommodation for rebellious kids was set up. Not that anything really changed; after all, being a billionaire meant Tony had plenty of rooms to spare in the tower. Now all he was missing was said children. Sorry teenagers, he had made a deal, nobody below the age of twelve. After all, loving families would scoop all the cute ones up in no time at all. He was looking for the ones who would prosper from being in a loving home, ones he could support and lead into adulthood. 

Now where was he going to find some teenagers nobody wanted? Was it legal to take them from other foster homes or children’s homes? He guessed it was the best place to start.


	2. Bruce

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony adopts his first troubled teen and everything seems to be going well. That is until Bruce reveals his secret that meant Tony ended up with him in the first place.

Yes he had to admit the name was a perfect name. I mean only a genius would have managed to it. Pepper hadn’t been so keen on the rebellious kids part, reminding him that if he wanted teenagers nobody else was interested in, they would most likely be troubled. He had thought about that but he was sure Jarvis could placate them, or his bank account would come in handy.

It wasn’t too long before he found his first teenager looking for somewhere to stay. Bruce Banner. A slightly awkward, typically nerdy looking teen. Tony hadn’t quite worked out why everyone seemed so glad when he suggested taking Bruce to live with him. Bruce seemed the perfect tenant. He was polite, he had an interest in Science which Tony knew would give them some common ground and he seemed capable of caring for himself, something else Tony was pretty pleased about. 

The only thing that worried Tony was that Bruce seemed a little shy, perhaps awestruck by his new surroundings. The home Tony had plucked him out of was in a rough neighbourhood, moving into the tower would indeed be quite the upgrade. That must be the reason he hadn’t seen the young guy for a while, not that he was worried, the evidence of pans drying on the kitchen counter meant Bruce was eating. Tony was impressed, when he was a teenager all he was capable of cooking was toast. Now his diet was more liquid, with the occasional take away for solid nutrition. Well if Bruce was able to occupy himself Tony would spend quality time down in the lab tinkering with his suits. 

Bruce was pleased to be out of the home he had been living in. It was a bit of a dump, next to the river, which was chock full of plastics and other more disturbing items. He had done a few tests with a basic kit he’d strung together with items pinched from the school science labs, and discovered it was also full of chemicals. No wonder they’d never seen any signs of life in the murky water. He has always had an interest in science with a leaning towards Physics. He’s read the articles that suggested Stark had created a new element, that he’d revolutionised the clean energy market. So it came as a bit of a surprise that this man, the billionaire had chosen him to live at the tower.

He really hoped Tony hadn’t done too much delving into his notes that came from the children’s home. After all he was the model teenager, he cooked, he cleaned up after himself. He hoped being in a new environment would mean the other issues settled down. Bruce has always hoped to find a home, however one small, or big issue always seemed to get in the way. Bruce has a temper. It hadn’t always been that way, but since hitting puberty his temper had flared. Any little thing could set him off. The worst part about it was that he wouldn’t remember anything about his outbursts. The last one he had smashed up all the furniture within his bedroom. He wished he knew what triggered the episodes but so far he’d not had any luck pinpointing it.

Down in the lab Tony was debating whether or not he’d need another cup of coffee when his phone rang. On the screen was a picture of a cartoon Pepper with a big smile. He picked it up wondering what Pepper would be asking for now.  
“Hey Pep, surely you know how to forge my signature by now?” it was met with a moments silence on the other end before her voice responded.  
“I was actually going to ask how things were going with Bruce”  
“Yeah good, the kid’s got brains. You know he showed me this apparatus he rigged from stolen supplies to measure contamination in the river?”  
“That’s great Tony, but stealing isn’t something you should condone. Where is he now? If he loves science so much have you shown him your labs?”  
“Not yet you know how I feel about letting people in here.” He sighed, he guessed bringing Bruce to the lab wouldn’t be too bad, after all the guy seemed to know how to behave around sensitive equipment.  
“But you have engaged with him right?” Pepper sounded exasperated. What did she think That Tony had brought a teenager into the tower and left him to his own devices? Well it was kind of true but he wasn’t going to be telling her that.  
“Yeah, yeah we chat and stuff you know teens, they don’t like being stuck with us old folk” Pepper was about to respond when Jarvis’ voice alerted him to something.  
“Sir if you would be so kind to go to the sixty-eight floor, there seems to have been some sort of incident.”  
“Sorry Pep, I’ve gotta run, teen trouble calls for Tony.” With that he put the phone down on the counter. “Hey J. What seems to be the problem?”  
“I think it is best you see for yourself, sir”  
Well if that wasn’t concerning. Tony wrung his hand together as he stepped into the elevator that would take him to Bruce’s level. What? He was rich couldn’t he give his new adopted teen a whole floor to reside in. Bruce seemed to be a cool cucumber so Tony was a little worried why Jarvis had decided whatever tis problem was needed his intervention.

“Hey Science Bud?” Tony called out into the seemingly deserted floor. So far nothing seemed to be amiss. That was until Tony remembered that he had recently acquired furniture to make the space seem more homely for his new arrival. Now he was met with splinters of wood and smashed up walls. What on earth had happened up here? Some sort of science experiment gone wrong. “Bruce you there?”  
“I think you might be best knocking on the bathroom door sir, that’s usually where young people go when concerned about their guardians reactions.” Tony nervously approached the door, knocking against it. He’d seen the mess in the room and part of him was worried Bruce was hurt.  
“Hey Bruce come on out, there’s nothing to worry about is there. I mean I have plenty of cash to fix all this up” he paused hearing the sound of movement on the other side of the door. “What happened too many chemicals in the container?”  
“No Mister Stark”  
“You don’t have to call me that, it’s Tony remember.” The door slowly opened to reveal a worried looking Bruce. Tony took in his ruffled appearance and the fact his glasses seemed to be missing. “Want to explain this?”  
“I don’t know what happened.” Tony’s face must have moved into a look of disbelief as suddenly the words were pouring out of Bruce’s mouth. “I mean I don’t remember. I have these black outs. I get annoyed and my temper takes over. It’s like I become another person. I don’t recall anything about them. I try not to but I haven’t found out what causes them yet. It’s something different every time. Oh I’ve really messed up. I understand if you don’t want to keep me now. I’m sorry.”  
“Hey woah there. So like you get ticked off and turn into some sort of rage monster?” He should have read those damn files like Pepper has told him. Although he reckoned he could understand this, he’d had some pretty random outbursts when he’d first come home from Afghanistan. “Don’t worry kid, I mean I can fix this all up. Maybe get you some bean bags or something instead of wood, minimise the damage.”  
“Really? You aren’t going to throw me out like the others?”  
“Course not although maybe we should sign you up for some yoga or something, release that extra tension. Stop lean and mean getting control. How’s that sound?” Bruce nodded and then offered a watery smile. “Now let’s get this all cleaned up and then how about grabbing a take out, your choice alright”

Later sat in the living room finishing off the dregs of his Indian meal, Tony decided to flip threw the pages of Bruce’s file. So it seemed he’d gone and adopted some sort of Jekyll and Hyde. Well if there was one thing Tony liked it was a challenge. Judging from the alert on his stark-pad it was only about to become more of an issue as the message alerted him to another teen that could require his care.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I thought I'd introduce each of the characters in a chapter perhaps before the story gets going a bit. I'm just writing this as it comes to me, so I've no idea how long it'll end up being.


	3. Clint

Tony poured over the email sent by the social worker, a Mr Coulson. This one detailed a younger lad, about fourteen compared to Bruce’s seventeen. The child’s name was Clint. How names their child Clint Tony wondered to himself as he continued to read. Clint had been found causing trouble with his brother, just petty things like small thefts, nothing Tony couldn’t deal with, it was the last part that caught his eye, the kid was from the circus. The flipping circus, what was this some crazy plot to make him look like a mad man?   
Turned out the circus part and the fact Clint was a bit of a prankster were reasons keeping him from finding a family. Tony felt a little bit sorry for the guy. He sent back a response about yeah he’d give the trial and thought nothing else of it.

Saturday was generally a day for Tony to relax; tonight he was having Pepper round for drinks and to discuss business. So he wasn’t the CEO, it didn’t mean he was being idle. She arrived punctually as always and made pleasantries with Bruce who was busy in the kitchen. After the explosive episode he seemed to be have clamed down. Tony reckoned the relaxation classes were doing their job. That and the whale music he piped through the sound system to Bruce’s room. What nobody said he couldn’t be an embarrassing dad. He’d even broached the subject of more teens sharing the tower and Bruce had agreed it would be an excellent idea. It made Tony wonder which of them was the adult the calm way Bruce had laid out the positives of having someone else to interact with,

“He seems to have settled in well” she smiled glancing over to where Bruce was cutting up some form of greenery Tony assumed to be vegetables. What kind of teenager ate vegetables? He thought they were all into fast food.  
“No need to be surprised I am doing well Pep. After all I have Jarvis helping me out, how could I possibly go wrong”  
Pepper just shook her head in response laying out the files she wished to discuss on the coffee table. She was just about done when Jarvis announced the arrival of visitors. Tony was perplexed he hadn’t been expecting anyone. It must be someone he knew his security protocols wouldn’t allow any threats to enter the tower, let alone his personal quarters.   
The elevator doors opened revealing Coulson. Ah had he forgotten a meeting with the social worker, well that was going to be awkward.  
“Phil” Pepper exclaimed “How wonderful to see you, what brings you to see Tony?” Her gaze moved then to a point behind Phil. Who knew his name was Phil. “Oh hello and who are you then?” she smiled then and Tony felt his stomach drop. Coulson better not have just brought the Clint kid into the tower without any warning.  
“Come on Clint come and meet Tony.” Oh so he had just decided to do it. Damn it Coulson give the man with an artificial heart a hear attack, that was just cruel. “Pepper it is wonderful to see you, sorry I am here on business, forgot for a moment, This is Clint, Tony said he was willing to give him accommodation.” 

Tony could feel the looks he was getting from them both.  
“Well yes I did but I wasn’t expecting.. Oh never mind come on Clint lets see you then.” Tony wasn’t expecting to see a blonde youth, slim but muscled but most noticeably sporting a black eye.   
“We found him in a fist fight with a few other kids. Seems the circus packed up and when the police were called so he doesn’t have anywhere else to go.”  
“I would have been fine on the street I know how to look after myself.” Oh so this one was defiant. Tony suddenly noticed what the boy was holding; maybe this was a way to get him to accept his new home.   
“Hey what you got there then?”  
“What?, oh this” Clint brandished it at them. “This is my bow, I’m a pretty good shot, can take apples right out the tree. It’s quieter than other.. weapons I guess and stops the other guys picking on me too much.”  
“Hmm well how about Bruce takes you to the shooting range and you two can get to know each other.”  
Clint’s eyes flicked up then taking in Bruce, seemingly calculating. Then he smiled wide and open. “Yeah sure that sounds cool actually. Hang on you have a range here?”  
“Well I’m not a billionaire for nothing” Tony chuckled watching, as the two boys became acquainted as Bruce led Clint out of the communal area. “Hey J, make sure to warn me if we have a code green down there alright.”  
“Yes sir” 

It took a while for things to settle down between the adults with Phil and Pepper both wanting to know exactly what Tony had meant by ‘code green’. It seemed they were pretty impressed with the steps Tony had made to help Bruce with his anger. Pepper was chiding him for picking up waifs and strays but the poor things did deserve somewhere to call their own. Phil was giving him a run down of all the petty crimes they had associated with Clint but couldn’t pin on him. Seemed like he’d picked up a right scoundrel with this one.

Later having placated the adults in his life Tony decided to have a wander down to see how Bruce and Clint were getting along. He found the older of the two trying and struggling to use the bow whilst Clint. Where was Clint?   
“Bruce?”   
“Oh hi Tony, Clint has been showing me how to use his bow, not sure I am much of an archer myself. I’m sorry I sort of hit the ceiling.”  
“Don’t worry all that much about that, but where is our new friend?”  
“Oh he’s retrieving a stray arrow from the ceiling like I said.” Tony’s eyes scanned the room and yes there the ceiling tile was moving and then two feet appeared followed by the rest of Clint.   
“You have some pretty cool vents you know” The younger boy beamed. Tony had never really thought about them and he wasn’t too sure if he liked the idea of Clint crawling around in them. “I hope you don’t mind I’ve sort of stashed some stuff up there, I like having a good vantage point.” 

Tony shrugged what even was this kid. Why was he crawling around in the vents? Maybe taking in a more rebellious teen was a bad idea. Bruce seemed to like him though so that was something at least. He had settled Clint into his own floor, near to Bruce but with some room, after all teenagers don’t always get along. He was glancing over the blue prints of the tower trying to map the vents to work out where Clint could access when his thoughts were disturbed. There was Clint dressed for bed and he was moving his hands around in front of Tony’s face.   
“I do believe Clint here is trying to converse with you Sir”  
“Hmm thanks J, but how is this conversing”  
“I do believe is it American Sign Language sir”  
“Yeah it is” Clint beamed. “I have problems hearing out one ear, not sure what happened it was some accident as a baby, wanted to see if you knew sign language.” Tony had to admit he didn’t and that was going o be one thing he would need to learn by the looks of things. So the kid liked high places and probably had enhanced eyesight to make up for his hearing. What was he dealing with here, a boy or a bird.? “Hey Tony are you listening or what?”  
“Oh sorry what was it you were saying?”  
“Well you know how you have loads of room and there’s got to be thousands of spare beds in this place” So the kid was talented with a bow, not maths, but then again what could he expect when he’d grown up in a circus.  
“Yes” Tony replied wondering where this as going.  
“Well do you think you could perhaps give one to my friend Tasha?” he hesitated then. “See she’s not too happy where she is, she used to sneak out and see me. She’s super bright and well I know she’d like it here.” 

Tony smiled but internally he was wondering what he was getting himself into. If she snuck out to see Clint what sort of girl did that make her. He made a mental note to ask Phil if he knew anything about this Tasha, before turning to Clint.  
“Well you know what I can’t see there being a problem with that.”  
“Ah cool, I’ll go and let her know” the boy crowed lifting his phone from his pocket and running off.


	4. Natasha

It turned out that Clint’s friend Tasha actually went by Natalia Romanova and was an immigrant from Russia. She’d taken on a more American sounding name and was now known as Natasha according to her case file. Other than that they shed very little light on the girl he was hoping to bring into his slowly growing family. Due to her immigration status she came under the care of Coulson’s boss, the one and only director Fury. The man gave Tony the creeps with the way he suddenly seemed to appear in rooms and his commanding presence. However he was the one Tony had to deal with if he wanted to give Natasha a new home. 

She was currently housed in temporary accommodation for children brought in from other countries. Fury wouldn’t release a lot of information on her, but Tony could tell from the snippets he’d gained that she had suffered a troubled childhood. He also wondered if the girl could speak English or what her habits were. He mused over these thoughts as he waited to be introduced. 

He had left Bruce and Clint in the kitchen with the task to prepare some sort of meal should he bring Natasha home this evening. He hadn’t wanted to get Clint’s hopes up so had explained the paperwork was taking longer than expected. He was now debating flipping through a copy of one of the women’s weekly magazines when he sensed a presence beside him.

How she had been able to sneak up on him he had no idea. But there stood beside him was a slim girl with a shock of auburn hair. Her inquisitive green eyes were staring at him in a calculating matter. 

“Fury says that you are planning on taking me to live with you?” Ah so this must be Natasha. So she was also able to creep up on people just like Clint. Where had these kids learnt these tricks? He hoped that she wasn’t so keen on pranks as his youngest teen.

“Ah Natasha, a pleasure” He wondered whether to extend a hand to shake hers but thought better of it. She was angular and radiated suspicion towards him. He wondered what had caused her to become so mistrusting of strangers.

“Clint told me he was staying with you, he mentioned you have lots of space and also that you need to work on securing your vents” Tony didn’t know how to respond to that, other than to mentally note he’d need to talk to Clint about the extent of his vent crawling habits. 

“Stark.” Fury had entered the room. “I see you have met Natasha” somehow this didn’t sound like a positive in Fury’s tone. “Well, Coulson has informed me that you are doing a good job with Bruce and Clint, I’ve no idea how I assume Miss Potts is taking on a good deal of the work.” 

“Miss Potts has a lot on with the business so myself and Jarvis are helping them actually” he responded. 

“Well it seems that as you have avoided any disasters you will also be looking after Natasha.” Tony turned to look at the girl. Part of him hoped she would be pleased about moving out of the holding building; instead she looked almost bored. 

The journey back to the tower passed in an awkward silence. Natasha didn’t seem very forthcoming with information about herself so Tony stopped asking after his questions fell flat. He had learnt from Fury that the girl was fluent in Russian and English so he knew she understood him. Perhaps this was going to be the difference between boys and girls. He’d have to ask Pepper about it when he got the chance.

She did seem to cheer up a little bit when she saw Clint waiting for her by the elevator doors and the two of them started whispering as he led the new arrival off. It had been decided before her arrival which floor she would be taking and so Tony hoped, Clint was showing her new rooms, not taking her on a tour of the crawl spaces he’d discovered in the tower.

“How’s it going J?” He called out taking a moment to process that he now had three other beings in the tower, all of who were his responsibility.

“Bruce requests your presence in the kitchen, Sir” Well that was something; at least someone wanted to see him.

“Hey there big guy, how’s it going?” Bruce glanced up hearing Tony’s voice. He seemed to be surrounded by cooking implements and the remains of some sort of food related explosion.

“Sorry for the mess, Clint told me that Natasha was from Russia so Jarvis and I have been trying to recreate some Russian recipes to make her feel at home and welcome her to the fam…tower” Tony smiled at Bruce’s near use of the word family. Yes they might be a little strange but he guessed that was what they were becoming.

“That’s very kind of you, I assume there is some sort of food made for dinner also?”

“Yes I have made a beef stew, you were right you know the relaxation classes have been a great help, they suggested cooking as a coping mechanism and it seems to be working. I just hope Natasha likes what we made.” Tony assured him that the girl looked like she needed a good meal so would most likely be appreciative of anything put in front of her.

“Jarvis could you please inform Clint that he is needed for dinner now” Bruce casually asked as he began plating up. The smell of the stew was inviting and Tony was glad he had stuck around to partake in dinner this evening; It wasn’t long until Clint arrived dragging Natasha behind him. The two of them Tony noted were conversing in sign language, so the girl knew it also. Perhaps Clint had taught her. 

She took the seat furthest from Tony but smiled at Bruce and thanked him as he handed her a bowl of stew. She seemed to like it as it was soon finished and she even complimented him on his baking of the bread. The three of them made conversation but Tony found himself being left out. Clint and Bruce would occasionally direct a question towards him but Natasha was acting as though he didn’t exist.

Bruce it seemed had noticed as well as when the two younger teens had left after dinner he came to speak with Tony.  
“Natasha seemed a little distant at dinner, did you say something to her in the car ride back here?” he paused “You know like give her some weird nickname like you’ve given Clint and I?”

“No” Tony replied, “To be honest I only tried to ask her a couple of questions and she ignored me. I feel like I offended her taking her away from the holding building. But why would she want to stay there?” 

“Perhaps it’s just this is different. It took me some time to get used to having so much after having nothing at all.”

“Perhaps, although I thought you guys would be overjoyed to have everything you could want at your fingertips. I have read about teenagers you like the best of everything. I just wish I knew what she liked, at least then I could perhaps have something to start a conversation with.”

“Hey don’t be so hard on yourself man” Tony swivelled to look at Clint. “I mean, yeah Tasha isn’t the most talkative, she isn’t even with me so don’t beat yourself up about it.” He paused then. “Look I didn’t tell you this but I know she used to dance before she came here.”

“What sort of dance?”

“Ballet, apparently she was pretty good, she has the tickets and stuff for performances stuffed in this old ledger she carries around with her. I looked in there once when we were hanging out. She wasn’t pleased gave me a black eye for my trouble.” 

So the quiet Russian was a ballerina was she? Well perhaps he could work with this. After some fiddling around on the Internet he smiled knowing in the morning a package would be arriving with Natasha’s name on it. Tony, despite popular opinion, did know how to do subtle when it came to gifts. Although worrying he was leaving out the other two he ordered something for them as well. 

That’s how in the morning he was greeted with whooping thanks from Clint who was brandishing a brand new bow and a quiet nod of appreciation from Bruce who was reading through the instructions on how to grow a bonsai tree. The most rewarding however was the gleam in Natasha’s eyes and the small smile that crossed her face when she opened the box to find a brand new pair of ballet shoes.

“спасибо” She muttered before gathering them in her arms and retreating from the common space. Tony wondered if he had upset her. He was assured by Clint that she had thanked him. It wasn’t until he noted on one of the surveillance screens the image of a young red haired girl spinning around on the wooden floor of her living quarters, that he knew he has made the right decision.


	5. Thor

Tony was quite happy with how the three new inhabitants of the tower were settling in. Bruce spent a lot of time sat in front of the windows, sunlight falling on him as he read through the latest scientific magazines. He seemed more withdrawn than the other two but would make conversation and Tony had witnessed him patching Clint up, after a particularly nasty fall from a vent.   
That had meant the young archer had been banned from crawling through them, although Jarvis had reported activity only a mere few hours after Tony had instigated the new rule. 

To prevent further mishaps he had decided to create an obstacle course for Clint to burn off his energy. It seemed to work well, with Clint forming a tree house type structure and declaring at as ‘the nest’. As they had known each other before coming to live in the tower, Clint and Natasha’s friendship only seemed to grow. The two of them would push each other to the limit. They had also taken it upon themselves to see who could sneak closest Tony whilst he was working, without him noticing them. It had resulted in several spilt green smoothies over the workbench, mainly due to Natasha being able to glide around the tower without a sound. Tony had decided his next project would be a robot that could mop up spillages. 

Natasha it turned out only seemed aloof to outsiders. She adored horror movies, although Pepper had advised against letting her watch some of the more sinister ones. Tony had agreed although he still allowed Natasha to watch she wanted. In his opinion whatever she had witnessed back in her homeland was probably far worse than some ghouls on film. She also thrashed everyone in any video game they happened to be playing. Even when Clint had begged her to reveal her secrets to being so good, she had remained tight-lipped, just giving a half smile and proceeding to wipe off Tony’s high score. 

He was pretty happy with the way things were working out. So his small family might be a little strange but they got on well. The teenagers seeming to be much happier having somewhere to call their own. He’d noticed they had started to add things of their own to the rooms he had allocated for them. Pages ripped out of magazines covered walls and small personal items had come out of storage to have pride of place. He congratulated himself on a job well done. 

So it was rather unexpected when he received a phone call from Coulson. His first thought went to where his three had gone off. Bruce had gone to the library Jarvis had informed him earlier. Clint and Natasha had gone shopping and were heading for milkshakes. Out of all them he was concerned that Clint had gotten into some mischief. Taking a deep breath he accepted the call.

“Tony?”

“Coulson.”

“I was wondering if you’d be able to do me a favour.” Well this was unexpected. Coulson might have entrusted three teenagers to his care, but Tony felt the man disapproved of him.   
“What could I do to be of assistance to you?”

“We have a child here who needs emergency accommodation. He’s come over from Scandinavia to visit his brother. Well he’s actually not a child, a teenager. I know you have room and well I wouldn’t ask otherwise but we’re having trouble fitting him in.” There was something in Coulson’s tone that should have alerted Tony that ‘fitting him in’ didn’t mean that the care home was lacking in beds. Instead he sighed and then agreed. Arrangements were made and Coulson would bring Thor round later on.

Clint and Natasha came back bags brimming with snack food. Spotting Tony they beckoned him over to take a look at their haul.  
“We thought we would have a movie marathon, will you join us?”

“I would but, well there is something I need to discuss with you both and Bruce.” Both of them turned from joyous exuberance to concern within a split second. Tony kicked himself mentally for concerning them in this way. “It’s nothing bad.”

With Bruce summoned from his rooms Tony told them about the earlier conversation with Coulson. All three agreed that they wouldn’t mind having another teenager around, even though Natasha mentioned feeling slightly outnumbered. Tony smiled and thanked them, letting them go off and set up for their movie marathon. They had reckoned that carrying on as normal would make the newcomer feel more welcome, rather than standing around awkwardly.

Tony however wasn’t feeling so confident. What if the new teenager couldn’t speak English in the way Natasha could. Coulson had mentioned he was foreign. What if he was distressed by what was happening with his brother? That had all sounded quite complicated. Fretting occupied the time until Coulson turned up. 

Thor it turned out wasn’t fitting in at the care home, not because there was a lack of beds, but rather because the teen was already standing about six foot. He screamed sports fanatic, tall and muscled with long blonde hair. He had smiled apologetically as Coulson introduced him, as though he felt he was putting Tony out. 

“So then,” Tony started “I guess we’ll be putting you up near Bruce, plenty of space up there for you.”

“I am sorry to inconvenience you so, Mr Stark.” So the lad could speak English, although it came across in quite a formal manner. 

“No bother, I have plenty of space, I mean the whole tower is mine to do with as I please.”

“Yes, Coulson did inform me of your wealth. My father is also a wealthy man. I have left him and mother to come here to visit my brother. He has been admitted to a hospital for treatment. He recently discovered that he is in fact adopted and it only added to his fragile state.” Ah so that was why the boy was here. It sounded as though the family had some things to sort through, but Tony thought what family doesn’t have a few skeletons in the closet. 

“You’re welcome to make yourself at home. The others are going to be watching a film if you want to join them?” Thor nodded and followed Tony into the communal space. He was planning on introducing them all but Clint as always, jumped in first.

“Man your arms are massive, do you work out or what?” Natasha scolded him for his question with sharp slap to the arm. 

“I do partake in the working out as you call it here. I am also on the athletics team at home, for the hammer throw.” So that explained the size of him. Tony would have to make sure he and Clint didn’t get into some sort of throwing competition. It wasn’t that Tony was particularly house proud, but he didn’t appreciate builders snooping around his living space. So the less breakages the better. 

He settled down on the sofa with the teens to watch the movie, Natasha had picked it so it was a suspense thriller. He didn’t have much interest in it, but watched the four youngsters interact. Thor was accepted into the fold straight away. Bruce had gotten up and made the blonde his own bowl of popcorn, which had been devoured before the movie had even started. Better get Jarvis to up the groceries, as this one seemed as though he would pack away the food. 

Tony missed most of the film. He woke in the early hours of the morning to find the common area deserted. Hopefully they had all retired to bed. The lights of the city illuminated the room, as he wandered to the kitchen to get a glass of water. Catching sight of his reflection he realised something seemed out of place. Bleary eyed he changed course, heading to the bathroom. The light turning on momentarily blinded him. Then he saw himself in the mirror’s reflection complete with doodles covering his cheeks. So the four of them were going to be quite the handful, well if anyone was up for the challenge it was Tony Stark. He’d just have to be a bit more of a genius than usual.


	6. A day at the park.

Long warm summer days stretched out before them and as a unit they became more glued together. Tony missed Thor when the young guy went to visit his brother in hospital. He still hadn’t opened up much about it but seemed to be coping ok. To take the strain out of it Tony arranged transportation for him and helped him use Stark tech to contact his friends back home. Thor had spoken of his father being wealthy, however he had let slip that both his parents had sadly passed away, making him an orphan like the others.

The hulking blonde was due back later in the day and Tony had the perfect plan for himself and the brood. Calling together his rowdy troop he explained a few simple ground rules for the first Stark family picnic. These included, don’t bring home any more birds you feel sorry for; the last lot made a terrible mess I know you still haven’t cleaned up. Yes I know, Jarvis informs me. Please, please don’t terrorise the younger children with stories of grotesque murders. Yes I know you are ok with it, yes I do have money, no I am not willing to foot the bill for their therapy when angry mothers harass me. As well as general rules such as no running off and don’t show me up. 

He had rung Pepper to ask if she wished to join them for the afternoon. She had declined stating work, but had made sure that journalists would not interrupt them. Tony might be well known by the paparazzi, mainly for things he was now ashamed to admit; however that didn’t mean these teens needed to be thrust into the limelight. Pep had thankfully not mentioned that time with the strawberries, which still woke Tony in a cold sweat some nights. But then again who had a strawberry allergy. 

Bruce had taken on the role of mother duck once more and was organising a somewhat eager Natasha and a less than eager Clint in making sandwiches. Tony had assured them that they needn’t do this; he could get them catering, full five star stuff. However Bruce had stated a picnic had to be made with love. Tony wasn’t too sure on Bruce’s idea of love when it came to sandwiches. He certainly wasn’t one to eat white bread with the crusts cut off (Clint’s suggestion). Come to think of it when was the last time he ate? Perhaps a sandwich or two wouldn’t be so bad.

It had been arranged that Thor would meet them at the park later once he had returned from the hospital. Tony had seen the three boys and Natasha engage in sports so he’d had someone pack up some equipment in case he would need to amuse them. They had selected a nice shady patch under a large tree, promising they’d return they left Tony lazing in the sunshine. Everything was peaceful and he even began to dose.

“Clint you know what Tony said about the birds” was the first thing that roused him from his nap. Natasha seemed to be edging on anger, as though the conversation had been going for some time.

“It’s not just some bird, it’s a duck, Bruce told me so, he even said the fancy Latin name for it and everything.”

“He also said it would be much happier if you stopped carrying it around and put it back where we found it.”

“I do think, perhaps returning the duck to the pond would be in its best interests” That was Bruce’s voice then. Ah Tony was glad he had somehow adopted a voice of reason. The other two were as thick as thieves but on occasion spat at each other like angry alley cats, squabbling over some titbit or other.

“She was lonely alright, none of the other ducks wanted to go near her! I’ll be here friend. I promise I’ll look after it. Tony!” Oh but now he had been dragged into it. Opening his eyes he was confronted with a rather sour faced Clint holding what was, as had been mentioned a rather bemused looking duck. “Please can I keep her? I mean we don’t have a pet and I can’t see what’s wrong with a duck. It’s kind of different isn’t it.”

Tony opened and closed his mouth. Clint did have a point. Behind him stood Natasha with a scowl. Ah so agreeing with Clint would probably upset her further. He’d worked hard on building their relationship, he wasn’t sure he wanted to sacrifice it for a duck. Bruce stood pretending not to be interested, they had learnt that conflict was one of his stressors. Probably best to avoid a rage episode in the park. How was he going to settle this one? Pepper was busy; he couldn’t ring her for advice. Especially when he’d insisted he would be able to manage a group of teenagers alone.

“Ah my fellows, there you all are. I had become somewhat lost in this green expanse. Then I heard the sound of Clint and Natasha bickering.” So Thor had returned. This looked like a good opportunity to distract them from the duck scenario. 

“Alright I’ll think about allowing you a pet. Not the duck Clint I’m sorry but birds, well I’m not all that keen” he paused taking in the look on Clint’s face. He seemed placated by the possibility of a pet. Natasha too seemed to be scowling less. “Look I brought some sports stuff with us, how about a game or two, then sandwiches. Oh and because I happen to be the most generous man, I will even consider buying you all an ice-cream.” His last statement brought a group of smiles his way. See, parenting not a problem at all. 

He sat back and watched as the four of them discussed the rules of the game they had decided upon. It looked something like Tennis he supposed, although with more complex rules. That seemed to involve seeing how far you could hit the ball for the other team to retrieve. Tony hadn’t ever spent time with others his age as a child. The human Jarvis had tried to engage him in activities, but he hadn’t taken to them. Instead he’d spent hours pouring over books, taking in knowledge and messing around with electrics. Seeing how easily the four of them fell into the game they had devised made him happy. He was glad they were getting along so well.

The game ended with the ball being hit into the duck pond. Clint had offered to retrieve it, but with fears of him smuggling a duck home under his jacket, Tony had decided to call it time for some food. Bruce had packed sandwiches it seemed to feed an army. He’d also labelled the bags so there wouldn’t be any fighting over them. Dishing them out he took a moment to digest the information on what each of them preferred.   
“Ok so I’ve got PB & J for Clint. Ham and cheese for you, Thor. Natasha what is this, oh some sort of fish with salad, Bruce you’ve packed hummus with pita. I didn’t know I had those in the fridge.” Tony stopped then seeing a bag with his own name on. Picking it up he noticed a large selection of sandwiches.

“It was Nat’s idea. Thought you’d like to try one of each. Sorry we didn’t know which you’d prefer” Bruce offered as way of apology. Tony just smiled. He hadn’t thought that they would make him anything. He’d been prepared to order something to the tower on the way back. Conversation turned to the possibility of school in the autumn, Tony realised that he was smiling and joining in, pointing out flaws in their plans. 

Packing up the picnic items. He decided to see whether he could wind them up a little. 

“Alright then you lot. Picnic is over, lets be getting back.” Natasha didn’t say anything. Tony wondered whether the girl had been used to not getting treats. He’d make sure that she didn’t go without from now on. Bruce also didn’t seem too bothered. Clint had a grumpy look. However it was Thor’s reaction that he hadn’t expected. Tony if he believed in such things, would have thought the scowl on Thor’s face, could have summoned thunderstorms.

“I do believe you offered my companions and I the option of an iced cream?” He muttered darkly. 

“Yeah course, silly me to forget.” Tony had thought they would whine a little and then he’d put on a show of giving in, however he thought better of it. “Come on then let’s go and find a vendor.”

It didn’t take too long to find one. It seemed, either the teens had scoped out the entire park before the duck incident, or they had some weird ice-cream-tracking device. Tony didn’t know which one was more likely. He didn’t mind though. The looks on all their faces as they stared at the options were enough for him. Letting them pick what they wanted, he felt gave him more cool guardian points. Grabbing one for him they went to make their way back to the car. However things for Tony Stark rarely went to plan.


	7. Steve

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The group of teens meet a skinny new member of the gang.

It was on the way back to the waiting car that Natasha seemed to be on edge. Suddenly she darted away from the group. Tony wasn’t sure whether to follow, although he could imagine the chastising he’d get from Pepper, not to mention Coulson if he let her run off. He knew sometimes she liked to be alone with her thoughts. he couldn't blame her, not after finding out what she had been through before moving to the States. However he had thought she was content what with her chocolate ice cream and the rare smile that had crossed her face as she ate it. Clint too seemed a little on edge and Thor suddenly became a much larger presence in Tony's line of sight. Well that settled it something was going on and the rest of them were going to find out what. As they approached the alley leading from the park, not too far from where the cars would have been waiting they saw a guy dressed in a hoodie running at some speed. He assumed Natasha with her weird child assassin skills has heard some sort of disturbance and had gone to investigate and this guy hadn't wanted to stick around to deal with the flame he aired fireball. What he hadn’t expected to find her holding back the scrawniest blond teenager Tony had ever seen. He was unsure if the guy had eaten a good meal in the last year. His clothes were old fashioned; most likely hand-me-downs and now they were splattered with blood. It took Tony a moment to compute that this was the lad’s blood, pouring from his nose.

“Just let it go, it’s not worth getting beaten up for.” Nat was telling this new kid who was struggling to get out of the grip she had on his arm. Tony wondered why he was so determined to throw himself back into a fight when judging by the look of him, he hadn't been faring too well.

“I had him on the ropes” the guy muttered, his voice altered by the potentially broken nose. He also seemed to be on the verge of having some sort of asthma attack judging by his laboured breathing. They would have to find this guy’s home, clean him up first though. Tony wouldn’t want to face an angry mother when she saw her son’s blood covered clothes.

“Of course you did. Look I am Tony, you may recognise me, you know Stark, the owner of Stark industries.” The look Natasha was giving him looked very similar to one he has seen Pepper give him before. He would have to monitor how much time the two of them were spending together.

“Yeah, I know who you are.” The new guy didn’t sound overly impressed. “Look I don’t need your help, I’m good thanks.” He paused to cough up what sounded like an entire lung, before fixing Tony with a determined glare. His eye was beginning to shut, no doubt from some well landed punch. Whoever this kid had been scrapping with certainly knew how to fight. Tony got the feeling that this stick of a kid probably didn't. 

“Well how’s your mother going to feel about the state you are in?” Tony knew then that he had made a mistake. Sometimes he though, for a genius he could be pretty dense when it came to human interaction, not that he would ever admit that to anyone.

“My Ma’s dead.” The skinny blond replied, his whole body seeming to deflate and if possible looking even smaller than before. “She’d not be pleased I was fighting. Just that jerk, he is so smug. Thinks Buck’s going to be his new best friend. Buck doesn’t even want to live with him. Buck’s my friend, ever since I can remember it’s been the two of us together.” Tony didn’t know what a Buck was but apparently it seemed important. “I’m sorry sir, I didn’t mean to be rude, I’m Steven Rogers, and it is a pleasure to meet you.”

So this Steven it turned out as the cajoled him to come with them didn’t have a mother or a father. He’d been living in a convent with some pretty strict nuns that had taken a dislike to his best friend. Steve had told them he wouldn’t stay without Buck, but apparently due to his ill health, they had persuade him to remain. Tony had asked Jarvis to pull up records of Steven Rogers as they drove back to the tower and boy did the guy have a lot wrong with him. At least Tony though having someone else with a hearing difficulty might be good for Clint. That one often forgot to put in his hearing aid and so Tony had taken a crash course in sign language just to be able to try and understand the hands flashing around between Clint and Natasha. 

“You’ll like it here with us” Clint was telling Steve. He’d insisted only the nuns and his Ma had called him Steven, the latter only when he had gotten into some sort of mischief, usually instigated by this mysterious being called Buck. 

“Tony hasn’t even said he can live with us yet.” Natasha chipped in “Not that I’d mind if you did, someone needs to teach you how to throw a better punch.” 

“Oh and you think he’d want to learn from a girl?”

“Clint! We both know Nat can beat you in a fight any day” Bruce interjected. “After all I’m the one that has to patch you up after it happens.” Tony glanced back to see a sulky look pass across the young archer’s face.

“Yeah well I can teach you to shoot a bow and arrow, Nat’s not better at me than yet. At least I don’t think she is.” The conversation was broken then by a wheezing noise, which Tony realised after a moment of panic was Steve laughing at the squabble between the two friends in the back.

“I wasn’t aware you had children Mr Stark.” Steve asked as they approached the tower. “My Ma used to read about your inventions in the paper.” 

“They aren’t mine biologically, I mean look at the bunch of odd balls.” This drew a groan from the assembled teens. “But I recently set up a charitable foundation for teenagers without a place to stay. So yes as Clint said you are more than welcome to stay with us if you wish to escape the nuns.”

“Thank you” Steve replied. He seemed quiet throughout his introduction to Jarvis and tour of the tower. His eyes did widen a little when he was shown the rooms that would be his. Tony wondered what his upbringing had been like. Jarvis was currently running some further inquires into the newcomer to the tower. 

It was revealed that Steve had grown up in a small flat with his mother. His father had passed away when he was much younger. His mother had succumbed to illness, leaving Steve in the care of the convent. Tony had questioned this for a little while until Jarvis pointed out the address was in an area populated predominantly by Irish immigrants. That had explained the use of the word Ma by Steve. They had also uncovered Steve’s date of birth. Which had gained him the nickname of ‘America’s sweetheart’ from Tony. Come on the kid was born on the 4th of July. Tony could have a little fun with that one. It was the reason that one day Steve had returned from a trip out with Nat and Clint to find his room redecorated in full patriotic glory. Tony had even given him a plush Bald Eagle to sit on the bed. 

Of course feeling as though the others would feel left out Tony had brought gifts for them too. He was doting and concerned about making any of them feel unwanted. Clint had gained himself a plush hawk. Natasha had a remote control spider to play with; she had a strange love for the creatures, having dropped hints about wanting to own a tarantula. Tony wasn’t keen on this idea and hoped this new gadget would keep her amused. He was a little stumped with what to get the two older occupants of the tower. Plush toys didn’t seem fitting for either Bruce or Thor. He’d ended up buying Thor a collection of sports equipment to replace the stuff he’d noticed was worn out. Thor had been appreciative crushing Tony in a hug. For Bruce he had opted to buy a collection of ornamental plants, something that he could nurture. They all seemed pleased, even if Steve seem a little put out by the copious amounts of red, white and blue in his room. It wasn’t until later that Bruce informed Tony that Steve was actually partially colour blind, that Tony felt a little bad for the guy living with such an American colour scheme. He’d asked Steve if he wanted it changing, which he hadn’t, although he had asked for some art supplies. 

Of course Tony had obliged and hadn’t had a second thought about it, until a very well drawn sketch of Tony surrounded by his adopted teens had appeared in the work lab. None of the teens were supposed to enter so he assumed either Clint or Nat were to blame, although he had never noticed either of them drawing before. He then thought maybe Bruce had produced it, until he flipped it over and read the little note:

‘Dear ~~Mr~~ Tony.  
I just wanted to say thank you for allowing me to be a part of your wonderful family.   
Steve.’

Well that was certainly getting a frame to be put on his desk.


	8. Steve's Jealousy.

Steven Grant Rogers. The kid looked like the skinniest ray of sunshine Tony had ever set eyes on. On the outside Steve looked like the type of young man that would offer to help ladies with their shopping or aid children across the street. Oh but how deceiving looks could be. He was different from the others; there was something about Natasha that spoke of sharp angles, sharp wit and a dark past. Bruce for all his calm exterior buzzed with an energy that betrayed his tendency to fly into fits of rage. Oh but Steve the little darling, you’d take one look at him and never in a million years would you think this small sapling would be capable of getting in more fist fights than anyone Tony had ever had the pleasure of knowing.

This time it was Thor trying to sneak Steve back into the tower. Tony couldn’t really miss them. Thor was trying to be discrete but when you were built like that it was hard to go unnoticed. He couldn’t see Steve blocked as he was by Thor but he knew he was there from the asthmatic wheezing which was clearly audible. 

“J, my good man, save these files it looks as though I have teen patching up to do once again.”

“Quite the heroic deed you are doing Sir, might I advise that you do not leave Steve to wander unattended.” Tony sighed that would be like herding cats. Not only did Steve get into a lot of fights he was headstrong and wilful. If you told him he couldn’t do something he would prove he was quite capable of it. Thor had said that someone of Steve’s miniscule stature wouldn’t be able to lift the hammers he threw on the athletics team. Well scrawny little Rogers had gone and lifted it, with considerable effort just to prove them all wrong. It also seemed that this stubbornness manifested itself in his friendship with the mysterious Buck.

“Another fight?” Tony asked moving around Thor to take in the sight o Steve holding his nose with one hand whilst trying to reach for an inhaler with the other. “What am I going to do with you?” he mused “Perhaps I should make Bruce chaperone you when you leave the tower, but somehow I don’t think that would work for either of you.” Bruce had been doing so much better. There had been a couple of times when he had grown quite angry and removed himself from the situation as well as the one time where he had almost smashed the crockery when Clint was winding him up. On second thought making him trail around with New York’s best scrapper might not be such a good idea.

“Yeah I almost got him this time though.” Steve muttered from behind his hand. The kid had to stop doing this. Tony knew somewhere Coulson would be watching him. He swore that man had cameras everywhere. He couldn’t afford to loose Steve, as it meant his parenting of the others would be called into question. “I wish he’d just stop it though, Buck’s my friend. I know he lives there now but he doesn’t like it.” Steve mumbled.

“Look Steve we need to get you patched up then maybe we can talk about why you keep getting into fights. You ok with that plan.” A small nod confirmed consent for Tony to begin dabbing at the latest injury with a damp cloth.

“He said the young man beating him up resides with his friend. Perhaps an element of jealousy is at play?” Thor mentioned as he handed Tony another cleaner cloth to replace the one that was already too red for Tony’s liking. “My brother is quite prone to jealousy, especially when it came to mother’s affections.” 

“Is that what this is about Steve? Surely you can get along with this guy for the sake of your friend?”

“You don’t understand though. Brock isn’t a nice guy. He is involved with bad things and he wants Buck to help him with it. Buck’s not like that, he would never get involved with the things Brock wants him to do!” Steve had become heated causing more blood to spurt from his nose. Tony forced him back into the seat he had sprung out of and instructed him to hold the cloth to his face. What was it with this guy and having friends with names that didn’t sound like names? He’d look into it, after all he didn’t want Steve dragged into whatever these guys were doing out of a sense of misguided loyalty. 

By the time Steve’s nose had finally stopped bleeding Bruce and Natasha had entered the communal space. They had informed Tony that Clint was practicing with his bow and had requested take out be delivered. Tony of course didn’t mind but felt he needed to fill them in on the latest with Steve. 

“Perhaps Thor was right and Steve feels some sort of jealousy about having to share his friend with another guy, especially if he hasn’t been used to doing it before.” Bruce supplied once he had been informed of what had happened earlier that day. “I mean he does talk about this Buck quite a bit.”

“That is true. He is always mentioning how he wishes Buck was here. It’s like he has lost him or something.” Natasha replied. “You know sort of a longing for something or someone.” Tony pondered this maybe he needed to speak with Steve about this Buck character.

Later a gently knocking on the door to Steve’s room Tony wondered how to broach the subject. He had been brought up by his father not to speak much of his emotions. It hadn’t helped all that much when as a teenager when both of Tony’s parents had been involved in a fatal accident. Jarvis in his human form had tried to counsel the young Tony through his grief, but Tony had never known how to express himself about his feelings and so had thrown himself into the business. 

He found Steve sat on his bed with sketchbooks thrown open everywhere. Noticing Tony he hastily tried to cover some of them up. Surely sweet as apple pie Steve Rogers wasn’t drawing anything he’d be ashamed to show Tony. Glancing down he noticed the drawings were of people, nothing untoward about them, just portraits. Although something had caught Tony’s eye, several of them were of the same person. A young guy probably in his teenage years whom Tony had never seen before.

“Hey there Steve I was wondering if perhaps we could talk about your little issue with getting into fights in back alleys?’ Well it was best to just go with it Tony thought in hindsight. The kid was probably used to people tip-toeing around him. “Is it something to do with your friend Buck?” he paused looking at the sketchbooks. “Is this him?” He asked pointing at one of the pictures. This one showed a younger version, but it was definitely the same person. Although Tony noticed glancing at another book, the young version seemed much happier with shorter hair. “Want to tell me about it?”

What Tony learnt was that Steve and Buck, or rather Bucky. He wasn’t sure either of these could be the guy’s actual name but he let it slide. They had grown up together. They had met at school when Bucky had pulled Steve away from a fight. Then when they were about ten Bucky had suddenly moved away following his Mother’s passing. Steve had asked where the family had gone but got the same response that the children were now in care. Steve had hoped to see Bucky again but it was then he started having problems of his own. Tony was a bit concerned about this thinking it strange for children to suddenly disappear and nobody to be informed but he was digressing. Steve had told him then that a few months ago a letter had appeared for him. He’d known instantly it was from Buck from the handwriting. Tony had held back a look of confusion then. When did people write to others in the age of technology? Apparently Bucky was alive and well and had a new foster home but he didn’t like it. 

It turned out through Steve’s story that Bucky lived with a guy who was rather controlling and his older adopted son the one called Brock who was trying to get Bucky involved in whatever it was he did that Steve didn’t approve of. No further information was given regarding what it was Brock did but it was apparent that Steve was concerned for his friend. Which had given Tony an idea. What did teens like more than anything? One thing came to mind, a movie night with copious amounts of take away. Which had led him to ask Steve to invite around his mysterious Bucky so that he could meet some people his own age. Steve’s face had lit up at the suggestion. 

Well that was sorted Tony Stark, famous for his lavish parties that set the media spinning yarns would be holding the first Stark Tower slumber party for teens in a few days time. He wondered how his life had come to this, but secretly he was rather pleased.


	9. Tony's not that bad really.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bucky will be coming soon.  
> Sorry for the lack of updating this story for a while. I hope you like the chapter.

Of course nothing for Tony Stark ever went to plan. A date had been set for the following Friday for the slumber party. Steve had instantly vanished when it had been mentioned to track down his friend and Tony had broken the news to the others. He had then asked Jarvis for assistance in determining what sort of food teenagers would prefer for a slumber party. Well apparently it was junk food, which was easy enough. He would just order in pizza and the movie theatre he had installed would be decked out in blankets and beanbags so they would have somewhere to crash. In fact it all seemed to be on target. Things were going to be alright. He could handle this. Except he wasn’t counting on teenagers doing what they do best. Being teenagers.

It wasn’t until the next morning over breakfast that Tony noticed the change. Oh. When had she gone and done that? There sat across the table, calmly eating her breakfast was Natasha. Nothing out of the ordinary about that other than she had cut off her auburn curls and was now sporting a poker straight bright red style. Tony had heard that teens liked changing their style, even he had done so as a teen but he hadn’t expected her to just do it without asking or at least mentioning it. How to play this. Act cool, that was it. He was Tony Stark; he had given press conferences to the most hardened journalists. He could deal with speaking to a teenage girl. It just happened that this one teenage girl had been trained as a child assassin and could give a look that would make lesser men wish they could be swallowed by the floor.

“I like the new look” he ventured. It was a tentative tiptoe into the conversation. The guys hadn’t seemed to have noticed at all. Or if they had they weren’t mentioning anything.

“It took you long enough to notice” she replied not really looking up from her bowl. “I mean it has been a few hours. I thought you kept a constant watch on all our activities.” Was that a tone of bitterness that Tony was picking up on. “Or do you get your assistant to do that? I mean I thought I had left secure compounds behind coming to live her but you seem to have just dressed it up.” Oh so it was a bitterness.

“Natasha.” He paused. Nothing in his experience had left him with the capability of dealing with this particular situation. 

“That isn’t even my true name. I thought you would know that. I though Fury had told you anyway. I appreciate your kindness and the fact there is no training regime, but what am I to you? Other than a whim, something that when you tire of me will be discarded. I have done research of my own. I have seen the way you go through women. I don’t wish to be another commodity to you.” With that she stood abruptly and left the room. Tony wasn’t sure whether or not he had caught the glint of tears before she was gone from sight.

“Jarvis, if you could perhaps call for Pepper?” he asked sighing. Maybe Pep would have a better handle on how to deal with emotional teenage girls than he did.

“Already on it Sir, Might I suggest you speak with her about this. Miss Romanova has been searching for information about you over the last few days it seems to have started since you mentioned the slumber party you’ve organised for Steven.” Well that was certainly interesting. Was Natasha jealous of Steve having a friend to stay? Perhaps he should.. No that might not be an ideal scenario; after all surely Natasha’s other friends would be just as deadly as she was. 

Pepper it turned out did have a better understanding of teenage girls. She had swept into the tower, chiding Tony for his lack of understanding. Found Natasha and in a whirlwind of phone calls and instructions had taken the girl from under Tony’s nose. At least it would give Tony time to focus on the others to see how they were doing with the idea of a slumber party. 

Clint seemed quite excited about the prospect of having all of them together watching movies and eating snacks. Tony needn’t have worried about that one; Clint seemed like someone who could befriend anyone given enough time. Thor too seemed excited about the prospect although he wasn’t sure whether or not he would be able to attend. His brother had apparently taken a turn in the last couple of days and Thor might get called in to speak with him. Tony was concerned about the brother in question, but Thor told him not to be and that Loki had the very best care that their family could afford. He made a mental note to check up on this to see if there was any way Stark Industries may be able to give a little more funding.

Steve he was surprised to find seemed nervous about the prospect of having his friend stay over. 

“Buck and I haven’t seen a lot of each other since he got back.” Steve told him. “I’m just worried he might find it hard being around other people seeming he only has Brock at the moment and Brock and is not exactly the nicest of people.”

“I’m sure he’ll be alright hanging around with you and you like the others I’m sure they’ll make him feel welcome.” Steve seemed to perk up at that idea that the others he lived with could become friends with his Bucky. Which only left Tony with Bruce and Natasha when Pepper returned her to the tower.

“Hey Big guy” Tony called out entering the lab. “How’s it going in here today? Made any fascinating discoveries?” It seemed awfully quiet within the lab today Tony noted. Usually Bruce would have some sort of music playing to accompany his work. “Bruce?” he called out wondering whether Bruce had opted to go out today. His steps forward crunched and he looked down to notice broken glass. Oh this wasn’t good either.

A few more steps as he found Bruce sat back to the workbench curled in on himself. He looked as though he had been there a while. Tony wondered why Jarvis hadn’t called him, perhaps Bruce had asked him not to.

“There you are, you ok?” Bruce looked up then seeing Tony standing there.

“Oh Tony I’m sorry. I don’t know what came over me. It wasn’t like usual. I didn’t feel like I lost control. I was just thinking about what I could cook for Steve and his friend and then the next thing I knew there was glass all over the floor.”

“Hey it’s alright big guy. If you aren’t feeling up to socialising with everyone you don’t have to. We all have times when we want to shut ourselves away. Even me.” He added seeing Bruce’s questioning expression. It was true, when he had first come back from the events that now plagued his nightmares he hadn’t wanted to be disturbed. He’d relished the peace and quiet where the only movements and noises were the ones created by him. 

“No it’s not that I don’t think. I’m just worried about you know what if something happens. What if I were to hurt Steve? He’s so small I couldn’t bare the thought of that.” 

“You wouldn’t hurt Steve no matter what happened. The others would be there to stop that and I would be there too. There’s nothing to worry yourself about. How about we clear this up and perhaps you could come and help me with something in my lab? The girls have gone for a shopping trip and well Clint and Steve are up to something I wasn’t allowed to be involved in, so it’ll just be the two of us.” Bruce seemed to brighten at that idea. So it was decided Tony would be sharing the lab this afternoon with his first fostered teenager. Now that would be something to possibly make the old man proud.

“Tony Stark!” Tony cringed inwardly, placing down his tumbler of drink as Pepper advanced on him. “You really are useless aren’t you? Calling me in to spend time with Natasha because you weren’t able to…” she stopped spotting the small model on the desk alongside the framed drawing from Steve. “Oh well perhaps not that useless” she smiled apologetically. “Did you and Bruce make this earlier?” She asked picking up the little statue of a man in full body armour. Tony nodded. He had been pretty pleased with the afternoon in the lab. Bruce and he had worked on producing a miniature man in full armour that could fly and salute. It wasn’t his usual work but Bruce had seen the blue prints and shown a keen interest and who was Tony to stop someone from pursuing their interests.

“Yeah the guy’s pretty good at working out things, that one can move around if I want it to.” Pepper sat beside him placing it back on the table.

“You are doing a great job Tony. They all seem to really like you. Natasha is just feeling a bit put out I think. She’s not the easiest person to get through to. But she mentioned the slumber party. I think perhaps she wishes she had a friend of her own or that she is feeling outnumbered by the amount of boys in the house. I can see her point with that one. You need to do something about laundry.”

“I’ll get J to do something about it” He muttered. So Natasha needed some more female company or perhaps more attention. Maybe that was the cause of the sudden hairstyle change. 

“She does like you though, so don’t worry about that.” Pepper added seeing his slight frown. “She just needs to know you like her to.”


	10. Bucky

Tony had spent a lot of time thinking about what a friend of Steve Roger’s would be like. He assumed somewhat similar in stature, he couldn’t imagine Steve running around with someone built like Thor. Perhaps someone also interested in art, maybe not drawing in the way Steve was but something similar. Steve hadn’t mentioned much about Bucky except he had been away for a few years and was now living with some kid called Brock. What was it with people and naming their children silly things he mused. 

Everything was set up; he’d even mustered up the courage to speak with Natasha about her feelings regarding the sleepover. She had smiled at him and told him not to worry. He found the look she gave him somewhat disturbing. Sometimes he couldn’t help but imagine the people she may or may not have killed back in her native land. Most of the time she was a well-mannered teenage girl but at other times he swore she was calculating how to kill him. 

“I know what you are thinking?” she quipped as she entered the kitchen that morning. “I am not planning on doing anything of the sort, it would be disadvantageous to me. After all I do require a place to live and this is much better than where I was before.” So he noted, mind reading also appeared to be one of her creepy skills picked up from whoever trained children as assassins. 

“So have you and Clint formulated any ideas about what this friend of Steve’s will look like?” He asked her. Pepper had insisted he try and engage Natasha in conversation as much as possible, so she felt she had a voice amongst a group of boys.

“Steve hasn’t exactly been forth coming with physical appearance details. There is a photo of the two of them together I believe in his room but it is poor quality, I can say dark hair but that is about all.” She paused then “I don’t wish to pry into his life.” Tony coughed trying not to choke on his coffee. He knew that Natasha had been attempting to hack into the tower’s computer systems so her mention of not prying seemed a bit strange. “Anyway, I’m sure we will find out this afternoon.” 

The afternoon came much too quickly for Tony, who chided himself for the nerves he was feeling. He had already taken in teenagers who now called his house home. Why was he so worried about meeting another one? Maybe because this one would have someone to compare him to? What if he were a bad father figure? He took a deep breath and instructed Jarvis to bring their visitor up in to the communal level.

It was true Tony had tried picturing what Bucky would look like. Never had he pictured the youth stood in front of him now. Firstly he had a distinctly unkempt look about him, dark hair falling across his fac. Then there was his eyes, a bluish grey that watched Tony like a hawk, There was something disconcerting about those eyes, it took him to realise they scanned the environment in the same way Natasha’s had done, when he first brought her to the tower. What Tony was trying not to notice however was the fact that the young man in front of him, body bristling with nervous energy was minus one arm. It wasn’t immediately obvious, but when looking closer it was clear that the sleeve on his left side was hanging limp. Tony cleared his throat to make an introduction.

“Hi you must be Bucky, I’m Tony.”

“Stark, Tony, owner of Stark industries former weapons manufacture, now working in the energy business.” Bucky replied. Tony couldn’t help but notice there was a faint accent to his words. Well this was awkward. The boy seemed to be waiting for something, lord knew what..

“Buck?” The change that came over the longhaired teenager was almost instant. His eyes softened and his mouth drew back into a smirk. 

“Well you took you’re time punk. Left me standing here with your old man.”

“Don’t be rude to Tony. He’s really nice when you get to know him. After all he let me stay here. Now quit being a jerk and come on in, we were planning on watching a movie.” Steve paused letting his lungs catch up with the amount of talking he had just done. “You ok with that?” The Bucky kid nodded, pushing some hair from out of his eyes. Steve beamed back in response taking Bucky by the arm and dragging him off to meet everyone.

Well maybe it wouldn’t be so bad after all. Maybe Bucky just had a problem with authority figures. Tony wondered what had happened to his arm. Had Steve known about the cause? He wondered why he hadn’t mentioned it, perhaps Bucky was quite capable of getting by without it and Steve therefore didn’t think it was an issue to be addressed. Deciding to see how introductions were going he made his way to the lounge.

Clint and Bruce were there and seemed to be making polite conversation with the new comer. Thor said hello and made his excuses, he had been called by a nurse wishing to discuss his brother. Bucky seemed to have shut off again, just a little merely answering with one words or nods. It seemed strange he was almost a different person around Steve. Maybe it was self-consciousness about the arm.

“How about we get some pizza ordered in?” Tony smiled. Four pairs of eyes turned to him and he held back the urge to shudder under the gaze of Bucky. “I’ll just call Natasha out of her room, see what she fancies.” 

The arrival of the red-haired girl caused the atmosphere in the room to seemingly crackle. Her eyes narrowed upon spotting Bucky stood by the kitchen counter looking over a menu with Steve. The two of them had been attempting to find something to share that wouldn’t upset any of Steve’s allergies. 

“James?” Her voice came as a whisper, but there was a threat beneath it. His head snapped up, eyes narrowing on her.

“Natalia” he replied a sharp edge to his voice. Tony watched the two of them, hoping against anything that they wouldn’t start fighting in his kitchen. He wasn’t too sure how you pulled apart an amputee and a trained child assassin without getting into some sort of legal battle. Suddenly the two of them were crossing the space between them and embracing. Well that was a surprising turn and a pleasing one. Tony let out a breath he hadn’t realized he had been holding.

“Как твои дела?” He asked as he pulled away from her. 

“Хорошо , переехал в Америку” She replied smiling. The two of them kept looking at each other and it was Steve who broke the moment with his question.

“I didn’t realize that you two would know each other.” He seemed quite pleased about the fact two of his favourite people apparently had some shared history. Tony on the other hand was getting a little confused why two teenagers were seemingly speaking a foreign language to each other. How did the one armed Bucky know Natasha, it was something he wasn’t sure he wanted to know the answer to.

“James came to the place where I was being trained a few years back. We learnt to fight together for a while, then he was moved elsewhere.” Natasha supplied. “Seems you didn’t fend off something too well.” She joked poking at his missing arm.

“Car accident” he replied gruffly. “Yeah Stevie that’s where I’ve been, got sent off to Russia, to join some weird regime. Then I was brought back here to my new family.”

“So you are also a teenage assassin?” Tony blurted out without thinking. Two pairs of eyes turned to him and he noticed the brunet and red head had matching smirks. 

“I’d sleep with one eye open” Bucky smirked, it was different from the one he had offered Steve, this was all sharp lines and a feral threat. Natasha elbowed him in the ribs.

“Leave Tony alone, he is the best parental figure I’ve ever had.” In a different situation Tony would have smiled at the praise the girl had just given him but right now he felt the need to ring Coulson and maybe Pepper. In fact he would do just that, get out of the situation, take deep breaths. There was nothing to be concerned about. Just two teens trained as assassins in his kitchen! As he darted out the door he noticed that Bruce and Clint didn’t seem at all bothered by this revelation. In fact Clint was making popcorn and Bruce was setting up the TV so that it would select a film for them all to watch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Как твои дела? - How have you been?“  
> Хорошо , переехал в Америку - Good, moved to America.


	11. A bit of panic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony freaks out a little about the identity of Steve's best friend. Meanwhile the teenagers have a discussion regarding accidents and also enjoy their sleepover.
> 
> Bucky talks about how he lost his arm in a car accident. Nothing graphic but just thought I would let you know.

Tony Stark did not freak out, oh no that wasn’t something someone could do in the public eye. That’s why he had moved out of the city after the events in Afghanistan. Deep down he knew he was suffering from some sort of posttraumatic stress disorder. The nightmares and cold swats in the hours of darkness had proved that to him. He had arranged for Jarvis to talk him down from these moments of panic, he’d also done intensive research to understand the causes behind triggering episodes. He might be putting on a brave face to the rest of the world, but behind closed doors, Tony knew exactly what was going on within his mind, and at this exact moment, he was most definitely freaking out. 

The phone seemed to ring forever; this wasn’t like Pepper she was always on top of things. What could have happened to her that meant she wasn’t available to answer? He didn’t want to think of the possibilities, not when he had just learnt that he was currently housing two possible teenage assassins. This was just typical. He had only sort of believed Coulson and Fury when they had divulged Natasha’s backstory. Sure he had read some of the files but… his mind was snapped from its thought by the sound of a receiver being picked up.

“Tony what is it?” Pepper’s voice was full of concern when no words formed for Tony, his mind still speeding along at a hundred miles an hour without him. 

“Sir is currently having a moment, Miss Potts.” Jarvis supplied “I do believe he is finding the identity of Steve’s friend hard to take in.”

“Really Tony what could possibly be wrong with a teenage boy who is friend’s with Steve. Is he more likely to be found getting into fights, has he fought with one of the others? Tony please say something you’re beginning to make me worry.”

“No.” He croaked his voice slowly catching up with his thoughts “No Pep, they aren’t fighting, in fact they seem to be getting along just fine.”

“Then what has made you ring me?” The note of worry was still there in her voice. Tony was so glad to have this smart dependable woman on his side. He needed her more than he cared to admit. Pepper stood for no nonsense and had supported him through the ups and downs that came from his past. Right now hearing her voice was grounding him to the present. Just focus on that a small voice of his own muttered, talk to Pepper it’ll help. 

“It’s just, I found out Bucky knows Natasha. Pep they were trained together in Russia.” There was a silence as Pepper took in the news she had just been given. Tony feared perhaps she had hung up on him.

“Ok Tony, don’t freak out alright, I know for a fact that Natasha is pleased to be living with you, I doubt she will allow anything to happen to you. She even muttered something about you being like a father to her when we were out.” Tony’s lips quirked into a small smile, she had said something similar to him just moments before. Before he had ran to his lab to seek solace within metal walls and contraptions. A place he had always sought comfort, right back to his own youth. “If it will make you feel better I will see what I can find out about Bucky for you.”

“Yeah Pep that would be great, just want to know what sort of person I have invited in to eat popcorn with those I said I would look after. Oh god what if Fury finds out, he’ll roast my arse for sure.” 

“Jarvis could you please keep an eye on Tony, alert me or perhaps Rhodey should he show any signs” she didn’t need to elaborate on the point at all, he was aware of their meaning. “Tony I’m going to have to hang up ok, I am meant to be taking a call from a client of ours. I’ll contact you with anything I find out.” Tony nodded his response then remembering Pepper couldn’t see him managed to mutter an affirmative for her benefit before sinking back down to the floor where he was tended to by a concerned DUM-E.

++++++++++++++++++

“I don’t think your adoptive father likes me all that much” Bucky mumbled beside Steve. The two of them were taking up the sofa beside Bruce who had drifted off fairly early on in the film. 

“Well you were a little bit creepy I guess with Natasha, you know the sleep with one eye open thing.” Steve responded. He had taken the news that Bucky had been abroad quite well. It meant that his friend hadn’t just forgotten about it. By the sounds of it Bucky hadn’t exactly had much chance to write. 

“Yeah I’m sorry ‘bout that.” Bucky mused chewing on his bottom lip. “Hey Stevie you think you could open that bag of crisps for me?” 

“I don’t know about that.” Steve quipped, “after all there’s some things you haven’t told me.” 

“Yeah? Like what punk?” 

“Did you really lose your arm in a car accident?”

“Yeah it was Brock’s doing.” Steve’s face turned thunderous knowing that that bully had had some part to play in causing his best friend harm. “He convinced me to get in the car with him, you know back in, well before I came back here. He had been drinking I think, said that if I didn’t do what he said he’d tell on me and I’d be punished. We were driving and he was pushing his speed, showing off, being full of bravado.” He paused noticing he had garnered the attention of both Natasha and Clint. 

“Don’t stop.” Clint whispered mindful of the sleeping Bruce. “Just I kind of want to know, got a thing about decent injuries, after I lost my hearing standing too near the guns in the circus.” Natasha shushed him, motioning for Bucky to continue. 

“Well it was fun to begin with, you know the speed but then he started to get aggressive, coming up close behind other cars and such. I tried to tell him to stop and he just snarled at me. Told me to quit being a baby. Why was I so special, it should have been him getting the training I was having. I wasn’t worth the effort.” 

Steve looked stricken. They all knew it was because he hated anyone speaking ill of his friends and they had come to know through a few stories he’d shared that Brock took great delight in hunting him out and beating him up.

“Well he started swerving around trying to scare me some more. That’s when we hit the ice on the road. It was out in the country, nobody had bothered to clear the road like they do here. I remember it making a horrible screeching noise then it was black. Turns out somehow I was unlucky; bit of metal sheered off went through my arm. The window shattered in Brock’s face, that’s why he has those scars.” 

“Man, that’s rough” Clint replied letting out a held breath in a loud whoosh. “Were you aware of it, losing the arm?” Natasha slapped him. 

“No, not really. I only found out when I woke up in the hospital. Pierce was there then. I hadn’t seen him since the day he dropped me off for training. He was furious about me losing the arm.”

“Yeah I can imagine” Natasha supplied “They liked us to be in top physical form. Would be interested to see what you are able to do without it. I mean I reckon you’re just using Steve and could very well open that crisp packet yourself.” 

“Ah Natalia you’re on to me” He laughed then and Steve shoved him in the ribs. 

“You’re such a jerk Buck. Glad that hasn’t changed.” Steve laughed in response. “But for that get your own damned crisps.” 

The four of them settled back into the movie then, it was something rather non-descript. Tony had limited their viewing since Natasha had made them watch the Babadook, that had led to some sleepless nights, especially with Clint crawling around in the air vents whispering to himself, for the sole purpose of freaking everyone out. With the credits rolling the four of them were now looking for something to do when Clint happened upon an idea. 

So it was that when Tony decided to ask Jarvis for an update on his teenage hoard he was greeted with a video of four teens trying to throw popcorn into the open mouth of Bruce. The elder teen had woken after Clint had purposely thrown popcorn at his eyes and was now playing along as a good sport. He had even proposed a score system. Steve had been worrying that Bucky was at a disadvantage but it turned out to be him, himself who along with Bruce who were lining up to be the worst shot. Well at least they all seemed to be getting along ok. 

Placated there wasn’t some sort of ex-soviet caused blood bath in his living room Tony was slowly beginning to calm down. He had been tinkering with the design of one of his suits. Not that he would let Pepper know. As far as she was concerned his pet projects had been discontinued. For Tony however there was something calming about having them to hand. Sure superheroes weren’t a thing, but having some sort of protection system for the tower allowed him to sleep more easily. Putting down his tools he went to grab his smoothie from the counter where DUM-E had placed it.

“A message from Miss Potts for you sir” Jarvis alerted him as his phone flashed up a notification. Tony slurped on the thick green sludge of the drink before opening it. 

‘Bucky was adopted by Pierce. As in Alexander Pierce, your business rival and head of the world security council.’ Oh well that certainly didn’t make him feel any better about the situation. Pierce and Tony had never really seen eye to eye and now it seemed his rival was housing a trained teenage assassin, but for what purpose.


End file.
